When watching the UEFA Champions League tie last night between continental giants Real Madrid and AS Roma, I couldn't help but notice the vast distinction between the usual British football that the majority of us have been accustomed to on a weekly basis.
The creativity from ex-Chelsea winger Arjen Robben, the surging runs of Real Madrid right-back Sergio Ramos and the undoubtable brilliance of Roma legend Francesco Totti was really quite a spectacle in itself.
Not that there isn't this type of greater quality in the English Premiership of course—there's a reason why many critics consider it to be the best in the world. However nonetheless, it's always interesting when watching these elite European sides going head to head.
While the different attitudes and influence towards the game was evidently different, the main thing that caught my eye was the countless amount of stoppages in play due to playacting—or what FIFA refers to as "simulation". With the upcoming European Championships getting set to take place in four months, UEFA and FIFA will need to enforce their authority and carry on in coming down on these shameful acts of cheating.
There were too many instances where we would witness players rolling on the ground as if they had been run over by a truck. With their hands covering their faces, players continued to lay on the turf in hopes for a free kick, penalty or even a card being shown to the opposing players. Even more suprisingly, the most prestigious and respected players in the world were taking a tumble in their attempt to deceive the referee.
As a footballer myself, I understand the knocks and collisions that happen in the game. It's understandable when you see the occasional player needing to take a second to recuperate and recover from an honest clash. When I see players doing dramatic flips mid-air before landing five feet away from the initial challenge, I wonder why they even signed up to play football in the first place. Contact is a part of the game—plain and simple!
This brand of "cheating" is what separates the Premier League from La Liga or Serie A as the top league in the world. In Britain, how often do we see players acting in such a manner. If a star player like Manchester United's Cristiano Ronaldo, who has been accused of diving on several occasions, were to take a deliberate fall, how long do you think it will be before fans and critics alike sound their disapproval? Even the most biast United fans would take a stand against such an action as it affects the integrity of the game.
In Spain or Italy, nobody can argue against the quality of players in both leagues. A good bulk of the most renown and talented players from the world come from the Serie A and La Liga. Kaka, Ronaldinho, Lionel Messi, and Daniel Alves are just a few names that come to my mind right off the bat.
While the problem of simulation has improved, there's still a long way to go before any of the ridiculous flopping will go completely away. One can only hope that this problem vanishes—the quicker the better.
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